On March 31, at 9:28 a.m., Highway Patrol Sgt. Matt Oxner stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation on Interstate 90, just west of Rapid City. As Sgt. Oxner was talking to the driver, the passenger, LeRoy Edwards, Jr., 59, of Federal Way, WA, grabbed several small packages from the vehicle and ran from the scene.

Trooper Zac Bader and his police service dog, Karma, arrived on scene shortly after that and started to pursue Edwards, Jr., on foot across a nearby field. The suspect was later found in a farmstead but with none of the packages. Trooper Bader and Karma later found three vacuumed sealed packages of heroin weighing 1.7 pounds in the area in which Edwards, Jr. had fled on foot.

Also found in the minivan was one baggie of marijuana and almost $27,000 in cash and checks.

Both Edwards, Jr., and the driver, Randi Edwards, 59, of Everett, Wash., were arrested on drug-related charges.

“While not every incident involves a foot pursuit, the performance of Trooper Bader, Karma and Sgt Oxner exemplifies the high quality performance that Highway Patrol troopers demonstrate on a daily basis,” says Col. Craig Price, superintendent of the Highway Patrol. “This incident is also another example of the strong partnership among law enforcement here in South Dakota.”

Among the other agencies involved included the State Division of Criminal Investigation, Box Elder Police Department and Pennington County Sheriff’s Office.

The Highway Patrol is part of the South Dakota Department of Public Safety.